Open holding cabinet, trays and controls

ABSTRACT

A cabinet for holding food having a housing and a plurality of slots is provided. A tray is receivable in each of the plurality of slots for receiving food. A controller is operatively associated with each of the plurality of slots to independently control cooking instructions for each of the plurality of slots. A cabinet for holding food having a housing with a plurality of slots is provided. A tray is receivable in each of the plurality of slots for receiving food. The cabinet has an inputting device and a controller, wherein the controller receives instructions from the inputting device to control cooking instructions in each of the plurality of slots.

This application claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent ApplicationSer. No. 60/742,848 filed on Dec. 6, 2005, the contents of which areincorporated by reference herein.

1. FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a holding cabinet for food, trays that areinserted into the cabinet and the electronic controls for thepreprogramming the cabinet to optimize food preparation and holding.

2. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In the commercial food industry and in particular, in the fast foodindustry, proper food preparation and readiness are a necessity.Maintaining the food for immediate consumption or near immediateconsumption a challenging and evolving area. The challenge is tomaintain the food at a proper serving temperature and maintainingoptimal flavor.

Typically, holding cabinets are slotted metal cabinets that have heatersto prevent the contents from becoming cool. However, such cabinets riskdrying the food so that it is no longer palatable or heating the foodsuch that it is either too hot or too cool. Additionally, such cabinetsmust hold food that must be assembled or partially cooked. In thisinstance, the different components of the final food product must eachbe at the proper temperature. Finally, the food must also be visibleduring the holding time to be readily accessible by the food serviceprofessionals and for restocking purposes.

Accordingly, there is a need for an automated pre-programmed openholding cabinet that incorporates heated regions, electronic controlsand trays that maintain the food product at a desired temperature forimmediate/near immediate consumption and for rapid preparation .

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A cabinet for holding food having a housing and a plurality of slots isprovided. A tray is receivable in each of the plurality of slots forreceiving food. A controller is operatively associated with each of theplurality of slots to independently control cooking instructions foreach of the plurality of slots.

A cabinet for holding food having a housing with a plurality of slots isprovided. A tray receivable in each of the plurality of slots forreceiving food is provided. The cabinet has an inputting device and acontroller, wherein the controller receives instructions from theinputting device to control cooking instructions in each of theplurality of slots.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other and further object, advantages and features of the presentinvention will be understood by reference to the following specificationin conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like referencecharacters denote like elements of structure and:

FIG. 1 illustrates a front perspective view of the cabinet according tothe present invention;

FIG. 2 illustrates a front view of the cabinet of FIG. 1 of the presentinvention;

FIG. 3 illustrates a cross-section side view of the cabinet of FIG. 1,according to the present invention;

FIG. 4 illustrates a tray of the present invention;

FIG. 5 illustrates a perspective top view of the cabinet of FIG. 1,according to the present invention with the top covers removed; and

FIG. 6 illustrates a schematic view of the main controller and the RFIDcontroller of he cabinet according to the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring to FIG. 1, a holding cabinet of the present invention is shownand is generally represented by reference numeral 10. Holding cabinet 10of the present invention is a pass through cabinet that allows foodtrays to be inserted and removed from cabinet front 15 or cabinet back20. Another manifestation wold featuere access to the heated slots 25from on side of cabinet 10 only. Cabinet 10 has slots 25 to receiveholding trays 50 of the present invention. Cabinet 10 has a touch screen30 that is capable of receiving commands from an operator to programcabinet 10 with cooking instructions. Cabinet 10 also has cooling airinlets at its bottom to prevent air in cabinet 10 from becomingexcessively hot. Cooling air enters slots on side and exits acrossentire face on the font and rear above the power switch and touch screen30.

Referring to FIG. 2, cabinet 10 allows the food in a tray 50 to be heldand kept warm without having to keep tray 50 close to upper heater 40.The distance between the food in tray 50 and upper heater 40 preventsthe food from becoming dehydrated. While FIG. 1 shows three slots 25,other configurations of slots could also be used. Cabinet 10 holds foodtemperature between 135° F. to 200° F. for long periods of time. Forsafety reasons, the outside temperature of holding cabinet 10 should notexceed 140° F.

Referring to FIG. 3, slots 25 are heated independently from a slot topsurface by upper heaters 40 and a slot lower surface by lower heater 45.Independent heating of slots 25 permits an upper surface, a lowersurface or both an upper surface and a lower surface to be heated foreach slot.

Slots 25 each have an upper surface mounting bracket 60 and a flexiblesheet 65 that extends downward from mounting bracket 60. Slot openings70 at either end of slots 25 are partially covered by flexible sheets 65prevent air movement through slots 25. Flexible sheet 65 prevents thehot, humid air in the cabinet 10 from escaping to the outsideenvironment. Slot openings 70 are partially covered with sheets 65, butthe remainder of the opening 70 permits tray 50 to be inserted orremoved. The sheets 65 are flexible so that the food can be accessedwithout removal of the tray 50. The sheet material, preferably TEFLON,is durable and transparent.

The are further benefits associated with the flexible sheets 65. Sheets65 allow food to be more accessible and prevent the operator from havingto having to remove tray 50 from cabinet 10 to observe the contents. Theoperator is able to assemble sandwiches more efficiently and reduce thelength of time that a customer waits for food. Additionally, theoperator sees when a tray is getting close to being empty withoutpulling the tray, thereby minimizing interruptions in assembly andcustomer service. Further, the sheets 65 cover the opening 70 and thealuminum tray. The sheet provides a movable barrier that keeps theholding environment hot, but still allows access to the food forserving.

Referring to FIG. 4, tray 50 is a metal tray that is designed to fitcabinet 10. Tray 50 allows superior holding and versatility over traysthat are currently being used because it can be used with multipleproducts. Present holding cabinets require four different trays alongwith extra wire-formed accessories to hold food product successfully.Further, trays 50 are made from aluminum and allow quick transfer ofheat to the food product being held. Cabinets are equipped with plastictrays that cool the product down when initially used. The ridges in thebottom of the tray provide minimal contact to the food product whilemaximizing contact area to the heaters to allow the food to maintain itsoriginal heat from cooking.

Trays 50 are configured to accept a variety of food types for warmingand heating. Trays 50 are sized to easily fit in slots 25 to ensurequick ingress and egress from either side of cabinet 10 during foodservice. Trays 50 also have embedded chips 52 to activate timers inrespective slots 25 when the trays 50 are inserted. Chips 52 have radiofrequency (RF) tags that are associated with a particular food item thatis placed therein. A controller recognizes tag from being pre-programmedby operator using touch screen. When a tray for a particular food itemis placed in cabinet 10, timer and heater automatically commence atpreprogrammed time and temperature, respectively.

A touch screen 30 is located at the front of cabinet 10. Touch screen 30permits an operator to enter into memory the individual foods that willbe kept in the cabinet and their respective parameters, such as heatingtimes and temperatures. In a first mode, touch screen 30 permits entirecabinet 10 and individual slots 25 to be preprogrammed to ensure thatheaters are activated at specified temperatures and for specifiedlengths of time. This touch screen display allows a user to also programtray and cabinet contents. Slot 25 is programmed to accept certain food.When tray 50 is placed in slot 25, upper and/or lower heaters commenceproper operation based on the particular food, a timer commencesaccording to the food properties.

Slot 25 is equipped with RF sensors to detect the signal from chip intray 50 and to activate the timers. In a second mode, tray 50 has an RFidentifier that is recognized by controller. Controller recognizes theRF tag that is associated with a particular food to be heated at apre-programmed temperature for a preprogrammed time. In this mode whentray 50 is placed in slot 25, timer automatically starts and food iswarmed to preprogrammed temperature. In an alternative move, the slot isalready at a particular temperature, and the controller sends a warningto the user if a tray is inserted that requires a different set pointother than that for which the slot is set. The user wold then have toinsert the tray into a different slot. Touch screen 30 permits cabinet10 to be changed from one mode to another. Additionally, touch screenpermits changing between “Breakfast” and “Lunch” modes, for example.There could also be other menus that are available based upon, forexample, seasonal food items.

Touch screen 30 displays particular foods in slots of cabinet 10 topermit operator to read the status and location of the food in therespective trays. Touch screen 30 shows the amount of time that eachtray 50 has been held along with all other pertinent information aboutthe food product in tray. Touch screen 30 provides a physicalrepresentation of cabinet 10 to readily inform user of contents of eachtray and tray status and shows the status of the cabinet without havinga separate/unique display for each tray position. Presently, “first in”tray identification is used, which is not always functional. Onoccasion, the contents of a later inserted tray may expire prior to thecontents of a previously inserted tray and inhibit the operator fromproperly planning replacement product. The programming capability doesnot require a Personal Data Assistant (PDA) or other external devices.In other embodiments, indicators using different colors, brightness, orduplicity identify trays that contain food that are approaching the endof their useful shelf life.

In FIGS. 5 and 6, main controller 80 controls all aspects of the cabinetoperation including storing all user inputted information regarding foodtype, food temperature and heating times. Main controller 80 controlsthe upper heaters 40 and the lower heaters 45 of each slotindependently. Upper heaters 40 in a given slot will be rated at 750 Wto 1000 W. Lower heaters 45 in a given slot will be rated at 300 W to600 W. While these ratings are provided, other parameters could be useddepending on cooking specifications without limiting functionality.Controller 80 regulates the heaters with 1000 ohm RTDs, although othersensors could be used using specifically designed relays called triacs,for example.

Main controller 80 also interfaces with RFID controller 85 to controltiming in each slot 25. For example, RFID will supply the informationthrough a 9-pin RS-232 port on the status of the tray in each of thesixteen positions. In operation, on each side of cabinet 10, trays arebeing inserted from the front and from the back by user. If a userpartially pulls tray 50 out of slot 25, the timers would, in the absenceof sensors, turn off and the food would not continue to be warmed.However, the RF sensors allow the timing and heating to continue whentray 50 is placed back in slot 25. Even if tray 50 is partially removedthe timers will not inadvertently shut off. Tray position can bedetected up to 1″ away. Main controller 80 is able to monitor the timeelapsed on each individual tray 50 that has been inserted. The automaticstarting and stopping of timers, and programming of all features throughtouch screen technology.

The time expired on each tray 50 is denoted with light emitting diodes90 (LEDs) that are also shown on the touch screen monitor. Other thanthe simple LEDs 90, there are no displays on each individual slot 25.The LEDs 90 operate to inform user of tray status. For example, whentray 50 is inserted, the timer is to start for that position a green LEDilluminates. Green LED is bright if it is signalling the only tray 50 ofthat product. When tray 50 is partially out (partially inserted orremoved), timer is to continue running like in for that particular slot25. Screen 30 shows an error message for that position and a buzzer willhave steady tone to differentiate from pulsing sound of productexpiration. When tray 50 is completely removed, the timer for that slotis stopped. Controller 80 to switch the bright LED to the nextfirst-in-first-out tray for that product. The product in the left mostcolumn determines the hold temperatures for that slot.

In each mode, the LED colors indicate the remaining length of time of afood product before it expires. For example, the LED color Green, mayindicate approximately, from 100% usable product life to 26% usable liferemaining, and LED color Yellow would indicate approximately 25% usablelife remaining to expiration. These percentages are approximate ranges.The LEDs are located at each tray position. The green LED is on top andthe yellow LED is on bottom for each position. Both green and yellowLEDs blink and the buzzer will sound (0.5 sec on/0.5 sec off) when foodproduct expires, or if the temperature falls 10° F. below setpoint, orif temperature is 10° F. above setpoint for each location. Each positionof slot is identified with a file, such as a .jpd file, that shows apicture of the food product, the RFID tag of the tray and the timeremaining. The screen will also have a background color that is the sameas the LED identifier at the actual tray position. Audible alarm toindicate expiration has a sound pressure level of approximately 95 dB at12″.

The RF sensing capability in cabinet 10, controlled by RFID controller85, allows the automatic detection of tray position and insertion time.By eliminating the human interaction during tray insertion and removal,food product quality is assured. The controller 80 senses the traylocation and automatically starts the timing operation when the tray isinserted, and stops timing when the tray is removed. The automaticdetection capability eliminates the need for an operator to manuallystart a timer and a timer switch that could malfunction. Additionally,identifyers/display in the tray signal to the cabinet what food productis in the tray.

While the instant disclosure has been described with reference to one ormore exemplary embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled inthe art that various changes may be made and equivalents may besubstituted for elements thereof without departing from the scopethereof. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt aparticular situation or material to the teachings of the disclosurewithout departing from the scope thereof. Therefore, it is intended thatthe disclosure not be limited to the particular embodiment(s) disclosedas the best mode contemplated for carrying out this invention, but thatthe invention will include all embodiments falling within the scope ofthe appended claims.

1-28. (canceled)
 29. A cabinet for holding food comprising: a housing;said housing having a plurality of slots; a tray receivable in each ofsaid plurality of slots for receiving food; and a controller operativelyassociated with each of said plurality of slots to independently controlcooking instructions for each of said plurality of slots.
 30. Thecabinet of claim 29, wherein said cabinet further comprises a touchscreen, said touch screen operatively associated with said controller toreceive pre-programmed cooking instructions for said plurality of slots.31. The cabinet of claim 29, wherein said touch screen is operativelyconnected to said controller to change between a plurality cooking modesof cooking instructions for said plurality of slots.
 32. The cabinet ofclaim 30, wherein said tray has an identifier identifying a food type,said identifier recognizable by said slot.
 33. The cabinet of claim 32,wherein identifier is an RF tag, said RF tag recognizable by an RFsensor associated with said slot.
 34. The cabinet of claim 33, whereinsaid controller responds to said RF sensor to activate preprogrammedcooking instructions for said food type.
 35. The cabinet of claim 33,wherein said each of said plurality of slots is pre-programmed torecognize a single RF tag associated with a food type.
 36. The cabinetof claim 30, wherein said cooking instructions are directed to foodtype, cooking temperature of said food type, cooking time of said foodtype.
 37. The cabinet of claim 29, wherein said each said plurality ofslots has at least one opening, said at least one opening partiallycovered by a flexible sheet.
 38. The cabinet of claim 29, wherein saidflexible sheet is a transparent Teflon sheet.
 39. The cabinet of claim29, further wherein each of said plurality of slots has an upper heaterand a lower heater, said upper heater and said lower heater capable ofbeing controlled independently.
 40. The cabinet of claim 30, whereinsaid touch screen comprises a series of LEDs, said LEDs indicative offood expiration status
 41. The cabinet of claim 30, wherein said touchscreen comprises a series of LEDs indicative of tray position.
 42. Thecabinet of claim 39, wherein said heaters are deactivated upon totalremoval of said tray from each said slot.
 43. A cabinet for holding foodcomprising: a housing; said housing having a plurality of slots; a trayreceivable in each of said plurality of slots for receiving food; ainputting device; and a controller, wherein said controller receivesinstructions from said inputting device to control cooking instructionsin each of said plurality of slots.
 44. The cabinet of claim 43, whereinsaid inputting device is a touch screen display.
 45. The cabinet ofclaim 43, wherein said touch screen display is operatively connected tosaid controller to change between a plurality cooking modes of cookinginstructions for said plurality of slots.
 46. The cabinet of claim 43,wherein each of said plurality of slots is configured to respond to anidentifier associated with each said tray to activate cookinginstructions.
 47. The cabinet of claim 46, wherein each said pluralityof slots is configured to accept a tray of a single food type.
 48. Thecabinet of claim 46, wherein each of said plurality of slots isconfigured to accept a tray of a variety of food types.
 49. The cabinetof claim 46, wherein identifier is an RF tag, said RF tag recognizableby an RF sensor associated with said slot.
 50. The cabinet of claim 43,wherein said cooking instructions are directed to food type, cookingtemperature of said food type, cooking time of said food type.
 51. Thecabinet of claim 43, wherein said each said plurality of slots has atleast one opening, said at least one opening partially covered by aflexible sheet.
 52. The cabinet of claim 43, wherein said flexible sheetis a transparent Teflon sheet.
 53. The cabinet of claim 43, furtherwherein each of said plurality of slots has an upper heater and a lowerheater, said upper heater and said lower heater capable of beingcontrolled independently.
 54. The cabinet of claim 44, wherein saidtouch screen comprises a series of LEDs, said LEDs indicative of foodexpiration status
 55. The cabinet of claim 44, wherein said touch screencomprises a series of LEDs indicative of tray position.
 56. The cabinetof claim 53, wherein said heaters are deactivated upon total removal ofsaid tray from each said slot.